Plaster-board structure



June 3, 1930. o. v. KEAN PLASTER BOARD STRUCTURE Filed April 25, 1927 May Patented June 3, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PLASTER-BOARD, STRUCTURE Application filed April 25,

This invention relates to an improved plaster board of fire-proof construction and method of making the same which is adapted for application to the walls and ceilings of rooms, for which purpose the same may be formed in standard sizes as desired for a particular use.

One object of the invention is to provide a plaster board or wall board of the character described which is highly resistant to fire as well as one in which the tendency to crack is reduced to a minimum.

A further object of the invention is to provide an efiectivemetal binder or internal support for the plaster board which is adapted to bind the material of which the plaster board is formed firmly together and tend to support the same against separation at all times, as well as to provide a support by 2 which the plaster board may be firmly secured to the frame members to which it is applied in use. i

Another object of the invention is to provide a plaster board of the character described which is of substantially fire-proof construction and is provided with a metal gridwork or frame embedded within the material of which the plaster board is formed in such a manner as to serve as a support for the material and to prevent warping or buckling of theplaster board, and at the same time provide a means by which the plaster board may be secured to the frame members to which it is applied.

Other objects and advantages of the invention relate to certain novel details of con struction and improved methods of operation as will be more fully set forth in th detaileddescriptionto follow. 40 Referring to the drawings Fig. 1 is an elevational view of a portion of a sheet of plaster board made in accordance with the present invention andhaving layers broken away toshow the various parts and the manner of assembling the same,

Fig. 2 is a detail planview of a portion of a metal gridwork or frame such as may be employed inthe construction of the board,

Fig. 3 is a detail plan view of an edge porplaster 1927. Serial No. 186,278.

tion of another form of metal gridwork or frame such as may be employed in the constructionof the plaster board, and

Fig. 4: is a perspective view of one'of the main strands forming the metal gridwork wound with a thread of asbestos.

In the manufacture of plaster board or wall board for use upon the walls or ceilings of rooms it is desirable that such material be so formed that it will not warp or buckle 60 while in use, and at the same time be so constructed that the initially plastic material forming a part thereof be supported through its extent, particularly when used in large sheets, to prevent breakage of the same. It is also particularly desirable in modern construction to provide material of this character which is of fire-proof construction throughout, andalso provide means by which the material may be firmly secured to the frame members of a building whether such framev members be of wood or metal.

In order to satisfy the foregoing requirements and provide a plasterboard which is high eflicient for general purposes and, which. can be readily preparedI propose toform a plaster board by embedding within the initially plastic material a metal gridwork or frame so constructed as to tend towards providing a firm support for the ma 89 terial and at the. same time provide means for securing the plaster board to the frame of the building.

a In Fig. 1 of the drawings the plaster board sheet 1 is composed of outer layers 2 and 3 of initially plastic'material which is pressed against a metal gridwork 4 so formed as to permit the material to extend through a plurality of openings in the gridwork, and thus form a coherent mass about the grid- 90 work so that upon solidification the sheet will form a unitary structure without any tendency for the opposite layers of material t separate. from the metal gridwork.

The metal gridwork 4 as shown, is made up of a woven wire mesh'5, which may be formed of strands of any desired cross-sectional configuration, but which in the present instance are formed of wires 6 which are of segmental cross-section, since this form of wire is found to be well adapted for the purpose as presenting a relatively large area to the initially plastic material in proportion to the weight of the wire.

In the form of the invention shown in Fig. 1 a perforated sheet metal border plate 7 is provided which surrounds the wire mesh 5 and to which the ends of the strands 6 are secured as at 8, the metal border plate 7 is provided with a. pluarlity of openings 9 of a size and number sufiicient to permit the initially plastic plaster material upon opposite sides to extend therethrough and thus prevent any cleavage from taking place on either side of the plate 7 The plate 7 is sufficiently thin to permit the usual fastening devices being driven therethrough to secure the plaster board sheet to the wooden frame members of a building, whereby the metal plate 7 assists in securing the plaster board securely in place thereon.

In the form of the invention shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings the wire mesh 5 is similar in all respect to that previously described as i are the strands 6 of which it is composed.

The border 11, however is formed of a somewhat finer woven wire mesh 12, and the ends of the strands 6 are secured thereto in any suitable manner, such as being bent through the wire mesh 12, soldered thereto, or spot welded, or otherwise secured thereto. The wire mesh 12 is sufiiciently coarse to permit the plaster, in its initial plastic state, to enter the interstices in the mesh and thus form a coherent mass extending through the spaces in the mesh, and as in the previous construction suitable fastening devices may be forced through the wire mesh 12 and into the wooden frame members whereby the plaster board may be securely held in place. 4'

Fig. 4 illustrates a wire strand of segmental cross-section such as is preferably employed in forming the gridwork as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the same being wound with an asbestos thread 14. While it is preferred to employ a wire of segmental cross-section as shown for forming the mesh portion of the gridwork, a wire of any other cross-sectional form may be used, and while as shown in Fig. 4, the wire may be wound with asbestos thread to cause the initially plastic material to more firmly adhere thereto, the asbestos thread may be braided upon the wire or otherwise secured thereto. WVhile the wire forming the mesh may be covered with asbestos thread, wound,

braided, or otherwise applied thereto, the wire forming the mesh may also be employed without the asbestos thread covering.

It is to be understood that the wire mesh 5 is shown as in the form of a square weave, a triangular, hexagonal, or any other suitable weave may be employed, and that the metal gridwork may be formed in various other ways, such for example as, from unwoven strands, without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention. While I have shown and described my improved plaster board more particularly for attachment to the wooden frame members, I may so con struct the same as to permit its application to metal frame members, by providing suitable spaced openings in the periphery thereof for the insertion of suitable attaching means, or even by allowing the edge of the border plate to project slightly beyond the edge of the plaster for attachment to the metal frame members of the building, in which case the narrow space separating adjacent plaster board sheets may be filled by applying a thin layer of plastic material thereto.

In the various forms of wire mesh construction shown and described the wire form ing the mesh is of segmental cross-section, similar to that shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings, and the separate strands forming the mesh are so arranged that the maximum diameter of each substantially coincides with the plane of the wire mesh, as is indicated by the forms of the structure shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 4 of the drawings.

The initially plastic material employed for forming the plaster board may be of any suitable or desired composition and may be applied to the metal gridwork in any desired manner, but I prefer to form the same from a mixture of gypsum and asbestos fibre thoroughly mixed together, to which a small quantity of sodium silicate may or may not be added to increase the adhesion of the material to the metal parts of the gridwork. A sufficient quantity of asbestos fibre is mixed with gypsum to produce a fibrous effect in the plastic material and thus more firmly bind the material after it becomes set, but any other suitable fibrous material may be used in place of the asbestos fibre, and any other form of the plaster material may be substituted for the gypsum if desired. I have mentioned the gypsum as the preferred material since I have found it to be well adapted for the purpose, and prefer to employ asbestos fibre as the fibrous material to be used in connection therewith because of its fireproof qualities. The metal forming the strands 6 and border portion of the gridwork is preferably annealed or formed of metal suficiently soft to permit it to be cut readily so that the sections of plaster board with metal gridwork embedded therein, may be cut to size when desired, and the border portion may be made as shown in the drawings or of any other suitable form of fine mesh metallic material providing openings therein for the initially plastic material and so made as to permit nails or other fastening devices being driven therethrough.

What I claim is 1. An improved article of manufacture comprising a wire mesh formed of wire which is of segmental cross-section, a metal IOU border for said Wire mesh provided with a plurality of openings, the ends of the several strands of said wire mesh being secured to the border, and a composition material overlying the opposite sides of said Wire mesh and border to form a plaster board section.

2. A plaster board section of the character described comprising a layer of initially plastic material mounted upon a metal gridvvork, a portion of said gridWork being first Wound With asbestos fibre to more firmly secure the initially plastic material thereto.

3. An improved article of manufacture comprising a Wire mesh formed of strands of segmental cross-section, the maximum diam eter of Which substantially coincides With the plane of the Wire mesh, a metal border surrounding the vvire mesh and to Which the ends of the individual strands forming the Wire mesh are secured, and a composition material overlying the opposite sides of said Wire mesh and metal border to form a plaster board section.

4. An improved article of manufacture comprising a Wire mesh formed of relatively heavy Wire of segmental cross-section and provided With a plurality of relatively large openings, a metal border for said Wire mesh comprising a wire mesh formed of relatively light Wire and provided With a plurality of relatively small openings, the ends of the several strands of said first named Wire mesh being secured to said second named Wire mesh, and a composition material overlying the opposite sides of the central Wire mesh and the border Wire mesh to form a plaster board section. V

In testimony whereof I have aflixed my signature.

OTHO V. KEAN. 

